The New England Patriots suffered a humiliating last-second defeat at the hands of the Las Vegas Raiders, and the radio team was fed up.
A Jakobi Meyers last-second lateral — when the Patriots were tied with the Raiders, mind you — quickly turned into a debilitating mistake. Said lateral did not reach its intended receivers, as Chandler Jones made a play on the ball and scored a defensive touchdown.
I NEVER SEEN THIS IN MY LIFE. HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE.#RAIDERS WIN, WOOOW
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) December 19, 2022
Former #Patriots Chandler Jones too!pic.twitter.com/TsZBgN8va4
Rhamondre Stevenson took the handoff and ran about 30 yards downfield, give or take. He then lateraled the ball to Meyers, who ran a few yards backwards and chucked the ball across the field. That attempt failed for obvious reasons, and was picked off by Jones. On his runback, Jones got a free shot at the quarterback, and he did not miss.
https://twitter.com/NFL_DovKleiman/status/1604634934936850435
Poor Mac Jones, he didn’t ask for any of this. And neither did Patriots fans, especially those who listened on the radio and had to hear a disgruntled broadcasting team take this all in on the fly.
Stunned disbelief on Pats radio… pic.twitter.com/RYhNAymoux
— Chris Lopresti (@CLoprestiWFAN) December 19, 2022
Yikes.
Patriots broadcast team didn’t hold back after loss to Raiders
Bob Socci and Scott Zolak make up New England’s radio team on 98.5 The Hub. It’s tough to blame either of them for reacting in a harsh manner in the moment, as Meyers’ decision (and Stevenson’s choice to throw him the ball in the first place) was unwise.
Meyers explained his choice after the game, stating that he thought he saw quarterback Mac Jones open prior to throwing the ball across the field into dangerous territory.
Jakobi Meyers said the plan was to run the ball and go into overtime. Said he was ‘trying to be a hero.’
— Mark Daniels (@ByMarkDaniels) December 19, 2022
“I thought I saw Mac Jones open.” pic.twitter.com/tUEudAAjEa
Meyers also admitted he did not see Chandler Jones, who eventually scored the game-winning touchdown and sent Mac down the turf at the same time with a vicious stiff arm.
Overall, this will go down as one of the largest regular-season blunders in the history of football. And no, we’re not being dramatic.